Nowhere Safe

CHAPTER 50



“You can’t go running in there,” Sabrina yelled at Josh through the speaker on Ryder’s cell phone.

“They let me in or I’m going through them,” Josh shouted back at her. He punched the accelerator on his Porsche, taking every corner on two wheels, only slowing when he reached the airport terminal.

“You said you could do this and not get involved again.”

“Not the time, Sabrina.”

He whipped his car to the curb next to where passengers were dropped off. Sabrina was still barking orders at him when Josh and Ryder jumped out of the car. Josh spared a second to tell Ryder, “This isn’t Slye business and I may land in jail over it.”

Ryder ended the call, “I’ll have someone to play cards with.”

Josh took off at a dead run with Ryder keeping pace.

Someone yelled about his car, but he was already inside the glass doors and rushing past passengers unaware that a plane had just crashed. At security, he flashed his FBI badge, shouting that there was “situation” he’d been called in for.

But he wasn’t making any sense.

Ryder stepped in, calmly showing his DEA badge and in seconds he had Josh pushed through. When Josh turned, Ryder yelled, “Go. I got this.”

Damn, he owed the FNG. Josh raced through the terminal, looking out the windows where a plane rested off the side of the runway. The nose had broken open and part of a wing was missing.

Sirens screamed along the runway, racing toward the airplane.

Ryder and Nick were talking in his ear bud, but Josh didn’t catch it until Nick said, “Did you hear me, Josh?”

“What?”

Nick told him where to meet him to get out to the tarmac. Josh made several turns and met up with Nick who raced alongside him, yelling instructions and using his FAA badge–where had that come from?–to get them finally outside.

Holy shit, there was a huge crack in the first class cabin where Trish would have been flying with Dixon.

Josh forced his knees not to buckle and kept moving.

Emergency vehicles were everywhere. Foam was being sprayed.

Nick held his ear and muttered, “No word on casualties.”

Passengers were sliding out from an exit. A female flight attendant and an older guy were helping passengers slide out. Josh’s heart thudded against his breastbone. He was frantic to get inside there and find Trish.

He tried pushing past emergency personnel, but got shoved back. “Trish!”

Nick put his hand on Josh’s arm. “We’ll get–”

Josh roared, “Trish!”

He saw a gap and raced forward, hunting an emergency ladder, any way into that airplane. Ground crews were shouting to get back.

Nick caught up to him and said, “There’s a bit of luck.”

“What?”

“Senator Dixon was on this flight. Everyone thinks it was a terrorist attack to get him.”

“Dixon. Where?”

“The old guy helping those women onto the slide.”

That’s when Josh noticed the dark-haired flight attendant giving a hand to passengers had wild black curls. She looked over at that moment and saw him.

The old guy said something to her and she nodded then stepped out to slide down.

Josh caught her at the bottom, grabbing her into his arms. She was shaking, but dammit she was alive. He clutched her to him, kissing her face, her hair. Anywhere he could touch her.

Tears soaked his shirt. She gripped his back.

People kept coming down the slide.

Josh moved Trish out of the way so no one fell into her.

She lifted her head. “I should help.”

“You’ve done enough. I want you out of here.”

“They’re not going to let me just walk away.”

The hell they won’t. “I’ll tell them you’re in my custody.”

“I’m going to end up with a rap sheet if this keeps up,” she muttered.

Josh turned to Nick, who was watching him with a curious smirk. Nick glanced around then his low voice came through Josh’s ear bud. “Go on and get her out of here before she can’t leave.”

Josh whispered, “Thanks.” He guided Trish away, but she made him stop. “What’s wrong?”

She turned around. “I don’t want to leave Ron.”

The jealousy that slammed Josh came out of nowhere and practically blinded him. “Who the f*ck is Ron?”

Cocking her head at him with a surprised look, she said, “Senator Ronald Dixon. Told me I could call him Ron.”

He was losing his freaking mind. “Sorry, sweetheart.”

Her knowing look said she’d figured out what had caused that then she gazed over at the plane. “He looks fine and everyone is fussing around him. I tried to get him to leave, but he wouldn’t. Not until all the others were out.”

“He’ll get a hell of a media event out of it.”

“Yes, he will. I’ll talk to him tomorrow.”

Josh pulled her up against him. “I want you out of here now. I’ve had all I can take of watching you almost die.”

She reached up and grabbed the collar of his shirt, pulling him down. He kissed her, pulling her hard against him.

His phone vibrated with someone trying to reach him.

Chaos raced around them, but nothing mattered except the steady beat of her heart against his chest. He finally slowed down and held her more carefully. She still wore bandages and had been through a plane crash for God’s sake.

When he lifted his head, he brushed his thumb over her damp cheeks. “I thought I’d lost you.”

Trish looked up into his eyes, her beautiful brown ones full of so much love he didn’t deserve. “I’m not going anywhere.”

He put his palm against her cheek and dropped his forehead gently against hers.

His phone was vibrating over and over.

She whispered, “You better answer that. You might need to save the world or something.”

Without letting go of her, he lifted his phone into view. “Your brother sent me a text.”

Her fingers tightened on his shirt. “Does he know about this yet?”

“No, but it’s not going to take long.” Josh stroked her hair as he finished reading. “He wants me to come into the office. Has something important to show me on the mole. Must be on the computer. Wants to know if I’m picking you up from the airport because Heidi sent him a message, too, that you were taking an early flight.”

“Don’t tell him until I get home. I don’t want to deal with my brother upset right now. I just want to go home.”

“I don’t want you alone.” Josh typed a text.

“Heidi will meet us there.”

Josh thumbed a message back to Zane that Josh was at the airport picking up Trish then taking her home and he wanted protection at her house.

Zane sent back that Leanne should be in the area. She had a meeting near the airport. Zane said he’d ask her to take Trish home so Josh could come in now.

Must be extremely important.

Once the phone messages had been handled, Josh walked Trish through the terminal against the tide of hysterical passengers trying to figure out what had happened or why all the flights had been canceled all of a sudden.

When they reached baggage claim, Leanne came rushing up to hug Trish. “Are you all right?”

“Shaky, but I’ll make it, Sug.”

“What about Senator Dixon?”“He’s fine. He’ll be a hero by tonight.”

Leanne nodded and hugged Trish again. “Let’s get you home.”

Josh pulled Trish into a long, hot kiss. He didn’t want to give her up, but she needed to get out of here. If the goal had been to crash an entire airplane and kill all the passengers, plus any others if the airplane had fallen outside of the airport, Trish might be retaliated against as if this was her fault.

Who knew with the Chessmaster?

Trish held his face and kissed his chin. “I’ll wait up for you.”

Leanne said, “I left my car on the curb, but we need to go. They were towing a Porsche that looked a lot like yours, Josh.”

He slapped his forehead.

Ryder walked up in time to hear Leanne’s announcement. “No problem. Nick drove my truck here instead of his rental.”

Josh followed Leanne and Trish, watching until Trish climbed into Leanne’s four-door Lexus and drove away. His phone rang and it was Heidi. When he answered, Heidi started yelling before he got a word in.

“Was Trish on that flight? Zane is going apeshit and so am I.”

Josh tried to calm her down. “Trish was on the flight, but she’s safe. I just sent a text to Zane.”

“You couldn’t have.”

“Why not?”

“Zane can’t find his phone. It’s been missing for almost an hour. Angel went into labor. He’s losing his mind over Trish and Angel both.”

“Where is he?”

“The hospital.”

“The hospital?” Josh looked at Ryder and they stared in the direction that Leanne had just driven off.

Ryder pointed. “Truck.”

Josh raced right behind him and told Heidi. “Stay away from home and don’t tell Zane anything, Heidi.”

“Why?”

“Because I think the person who’s been stalking Trish just drove away from the airport with her. I don’t want anyone to spook her kidnapper and cause her to harm Trish.”

Josh stuffed the phone in his pocket and jumped in on the passenger side of Ryder’s truck while it was backing out and taking off. “I have no idea where Leanne is headed.”

“I do.”

“How would you know?”

“While you were following Trish around, I put tracking devices on everyone’s vehicles. Even yours, but we need my laptop from the hotel suite.”